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Saturday, March 31, 2012

If you're looking for an amazing art event this weekend, check out one of these! They're ending soon, so catch them while you can!

TONIGHT ONLY: "Emerald City Comicon Live Art Event" @ the Crocodile Cafe in Belltown. Featuring local and internationally known artists, the live painting event is a fantastic way to drink, dance, and art away your evening! This event is open to the public (21+), and will go from 10pm-2am to-night only!

THIS WEEKEND ONLY: "Emerald City Comicon" @ WA Convention & Trade Centre. The largest comic book and pop culture convention in the Northwest, the ECCC features hundreds of comic-inspired artists, designers, writers, actors, vocal talents, games, events, and more!

Friday, March 23, 2012

I arrive at Roq la Rue in Belltown to find the sidewalk in front of the gallery overflowing with people. Inside, a solid mass of artists and art enthusiasts have filled the modest space from wall to wall for the newest installation: "Red Current (Sweet Fruit)." Curated by Sharon Arnold, the show features innovative and insprational work from thirty-seven local Northwest artists.

CURRENT [kur-uhnt,kuhr-]

adjective
1. Belonging to the present time; being in progress now
2. Passing from one to another, circulationg
3. Prevalent, especially at the present time
4. Running, flowing

There are so many pieces, and so many people, entering the gallery is almost like stepping through the door into a living, breathing dimension where colour is hyper-saturated, everyday items are made of strange materials, and normal objects appear much larger than life. Surrounded on all sides by a pulsing throng of humanity and creativity, I spot a piece by an artist I recognise and an elusive opening in the crowd, and I take a determined plunge.

Allyce Wood has transformed a section of wall into an intricate organic thicket of dark vines and delicate silvery leaves. Her medium is hand cut paper, and silk screen on vellum. A little farther down the wall is a dual donut spectacular by Claire Johnson. Each of the four pastries is larger than my head, and they look so delicious, I'm tempted to forget that they're painted on wood.

A few of my favourite pieces in the show explore the notion of metamorphosis. Naomi Faith Smith has sculpted a set of white chocolate jewelry designed to gradually melt as it is exposed to body heat. Naomi's chocolate collection explores the "Comfort Zone," a temperature range in which many forms of life thrive including bacteria, viruses and parasites. Objects in the "Comfort Zone" are transformed by heat and exposure into oozing, leaking secretions, a process that mirrors the degeneration of human flesh as we age and eventually decompose.

Another artist whose work explores organic change and growth is Francesca Lohmann. To create her "Manual Growth" pieces, Francesca repeatedly pierces the surface of handmade paper with a needle and beeswax. The edges of the tiny punctures pucker, coalescing into larger growths and bulges.

The only down-side of the "Red Current" show is that it ends so soon; this display will only be up through April 7th. Roq la Rue will have a new show opening on April 13th featuring the works of Lindsey Carr and Handiedan. But until then, enjoy Mandy Greer's beatifully creepy "Pelican Goddess" that ushers gallery walkers from the whimsical world of "Red Current" back to real life.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Gargoyles Statuary on the Ave has been one of my favourite Seattle shops since I first discovered it back in high school (it's been a while). So much Gothic elegance and neo-Victorian aesthetic squeezed into such a small space... It's nearly impossible to turn about without bumping into a mystical trinket, but if you're looking for high quality hand-dipped incense, essential oils, distinctive home accents, or unique local art, Gargoyles is absolutely the place.

I wandered in this past weekend to re-stock my incense supply and ended up speaking with Gayle, shop proprietor and coordinator of the University District Art Walk. The art walk is scheduled for the 3rd Friday of every month, but apparently, the past couple months have been a bit rough on the Ave's art scene. The U District Art Walk used to be sponsored by the University District Service Fund, a non-profit organisation managed by the Greater University Chamber of Commerce. Recently, however, the GUCC dropped the art walk from the service fund, citing frustration with coordination of artists, venues, and publicity.

Gayle has been spreading herself thin attempting to allocate art walk responsibilities in addition to managing Gargoyles, so I offered to pick up a little of the slack. In addition to my blog, I do a bit of web design, so I have now officially taken over as web designer/webmaster for the University District Art Walk. As far as I'm concerned, art events in Seattle can never have too much positive press, and I'm happy to volunteer a few hours each month to make sure the art walk on the Ave has a current and dynamic website. Also, I get to work with a fantastic group of dedicated art enthusiasts, and I get a sneak peak at the works of monthly featured artists.

This month, Gargoyles is featuring "Denizens of Mythology," the art of Jeffrey Shaw, original works inspired by mythology from around the world, and created with a combination of digital and traditional media. Giclee prints and figurines of griffins, goblins, mermaids, centaurs, gnomes, and the Egyptian cat goddess Bast are spread salon-style across the back wall. The metal prints glimmer through the darkness like portals to fantastical worlds. Jeffrey's inspiration comes from his travels and his childhood fascination with recurring mythological themes that transcend geography and culture.

Jeffrey Shaw @ Gargoyles

Just up the road from Gargoyles is Tully's Coffee, a well-established coffee chain with roots in the Pacific Northwest. "I Wonder," a selection of photographs by Tom Whipple covers two entire walls beside the barista station. Tom's artistic process involves both traditional and digital media; he chooses his subjects based on form and perspective, captures the scene with his camera, and then digitally combines multiple exposures to create his compositions. The overall effect is like viewing a world just a little to the left of real.

Tom Whipple @ Tully's Coffee

My final stop of the night is a clothing shop called Aprie. Their featured collage artist, Dominique Cliento, is based in Seattle; each of her pieces are hand-painted and embellished
with vintage playing cards, letters, book pages, recipes, sheet music, leaves, found objects, and
other ephemera. The resulting works are haunting in feel and antique in aesthetic.

Dominique Cliento @ Aprie

In addition to Gargoyles, Tully's, and Aprie; other University District Art Walk participants this month include Chaco Canyon Cafe with the paintings of Sarah Ghanooni, Starbucks Coffee featuring African painter ABA, and the University Business Center with the photography of Shauna Kruse. The University District Art Walk might be a little smaller than it was a few months ago, but the excellence of the art and the singular essence of the Ave haven't changed. We already have a couple more retailers on board for next month, and with a little luck and a good bit of persistence, the art walk on the Ave will be back to its familiar bustle very soon.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

If you're not at Bherd Studios' five-year anniversary show to-night, you're missing out on the art opening of the season!

Over the past five years, John and Michele Osgood, owners/directors of Bherd, have made it their mission to promote the talents of emerging and locally established artists from the Pacific Northwest by providing a space for them to be seen and 'bherd'. "Look Up Here: 5 Years of Urban & Contemporary Art" features work
by 33 artists who have curated shows and participated in past Bherd Studios exhibits and events. Each of these artists have created unique and
inspiring bodies of work and consistently go out of their way to support
other artists in the Seattle art community.

Redd Walitzki @ Bherd Studios

Redd Walitzki and her partner Carl Faulkner created Studio X-17, a gallery space designed to exhibit emerging, counter-culture, and controversial work. Established in 2008 as part of the 1st Thursday art walk in Pioneer Square, X-17 has showcased over 200 local and international artists. X-17 is currently looking for a new home due to the closure of the 619 Arts Building last year, but a new art space, Pi2, is in the works. Both Redd and Carl designed rooms for the City Hostel Seattle project, and have exhibited work in numerous venues in the Pacific Northwest.

Siolo Thompson recently curated the "Pretty Sexy Dirty Girly" show at Bherd Studios, a selection of provocative works by talented women artists. She has been invited to curate a show for True Love Gallery in July, and she frequently exhibits at Bherd and other Seattle art spaces. She participates in live painting events around the city, and her illustration and animation work have been featured locally and internationally.

Chris Sheridan has shown his paintings in Seattle, L.A., San Francisco, New York, Miami, Philadelphia, and other cities up and down the coasts. He also created a room for the City Hostel Seattle project, regularly participates in Bherd events, and builds hand-crafted and custom painted skateboards featuring his unique imagery.

Kate Protage has had exhibits in Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Princeton and New York. She shows regularly at Bherd Studios, and her Seattle art affiliations include the SAM Gallery, CORE Gallery, and the Twilight Artist Collective. Her work has also been featured in multiple magazines.

These are just a few examples of the efforts of the artists recognised in Bherd Studio's 5th anniversary show. Without their dedication and vision, Seattle's urban art scene would be a very different place.

"Look Up Here" will be up through Friday, 27 April. The encore
opening on Friday, 13 April will feature the 5-year anniversary art book
(contact Bherd Studios to pre-order your copy) and artist signings.
Bherd Studios is a part of the Greenwood Collective, an historic
building home to six other art galleries that open every 2nd Friday for
the Art Walk in the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge neighbourhood.

Chris Sheridan, Kate Protage and more! @ Bherd Studios

UrbanLight Studios, part of the Greenwood Collective and just down the hall from Bherd, is hosting an owl-themed extravaganza! Tiny owl cake pops in a fluffy tissue nest are going so fast they're practically flying out the door, but I manage to snag a picture before they all disappear. These unique and edible bite-size treats are courtesy of Julie and Jessica at the Ballard-based bakery, So Mini Sweets.

So Mini Sweets @ UrbanLight Studios

Other works of owlish delight include paintings by Andrew Miller (Mantisart), and Zelot.

Zelot @ UrbanLight Studios

Andrew Miller @ UrbanLight Studios

Ceramic artist Eva Funderburg has created a contingent of tiny owl-cat monsters. A part of me wishes these adorably dangerous creatures were about 20 times as large and alive so that I could smuggle home the entire fleet to train as my personal owl-cat guard. Then again, I suppose a pocket-sized monster has its uses...

Eva Funderburgh @ UrbanLight Studios

There is a fun and exciting Art Wall going down in Home Suite Home. Grab a pen or three and make your mark! The artscape changes considerably over the course of the evening; but before I leave for the night, I witness the scribbled antics of a mischievous raccoon, a be-sneakered hog of horrific proportions, an alien being with far too many limbs to be comfortable, and a plethora of obscure and archaic symbols. I scrawl a phrase in Elder Futhark and a watchful eye, and my guerrilla art mission for the eve is complete.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

This evening I'm on a mission to explore the south side of the art walk, but I still absolutely have to begin at CakeSpy. I'm accompanied by jewelry artist Grace Wood, a long-time friend and fellow arts, crafts and tasty treats enthusiast. CakeSpy is featuring its familiar delightful dessert-themed display, but this month their very own Jessie Oleson a.k.a. "CakeSpy," owner and operator of the CakeSpy retail space has a new series of paintings and a shiney new cookbook! Sweet Treats for a Sugar-Filled Life includes 60 recipes and hundreds of illustrations designed to make every afternoon of baking an adventure. Try the "S'moreos" on page 25; they're decadent, delicious (and microwave friendly)!

Jessie Oleson "CakeSpy" @ CakeSpy

"S'moreos" @ CakeSpy

Bauhaus Books & Coffee has a new artist this month as well - Corey "Reyyy" Lewis, comic artist and creator of the graphic novels "Sharknife" and "Peng." You can see his work at the 2012 Emeral City Comic Con this month as well.

Corey "Reyyy" Lewis @ Bauhaus

Just up the hill from CakeSpy and Bauhaus is True Love Art Gallery, a tattoo parlour and soon-to-be retail shop for toy, books, clothes, and mags. To-night's artists are Nico Lund, and David and Carolina Enriquez. I am immediately drawn to Carolina's cupcake display, her tiny felt fuzzy critter pins, and her playful, sweet themed characatures in gouache.

Carolina Enriquez @ True Love Art Gallery

Frame Central on the corner of Broadway & Pike is one of my favourite places for custom framing, pre-made frames, and matting and wiring materials. Their excellent selection is surpassed only by their fantastic customer service. They've let me use their power tools on a couple of occasions when I've been in a bind. I've never been here for art walk before, but this evening their upstairs gallery is showcasing the pinup paintings of Suzy Todd, a painter and ink artist at Two Birds Tattoo. I especially dig her watercolour series of playing card queens.

Suzy Todd @ Frame Central

Our last stop of the evening is Cupcake Royale. This month's artist is Joey Veltkamp,
a self-taught artist interested in transforming every day objects into
an artistic experience. "The Blanket Show" features close to 50 pen and
pencil drawings of blankets.

From blitzcapitolhill.com: "Blankets are charged with residual energy from our daily lives. We sleep
with them and make love in them. They collect our dreams and our
nightmares, our dirt and our tears. We cling to them when we're sick,
when we're tired, when we're at our most vulnerable. Even the names we
attach, "comforter" and "security blanket," reveal their importance."

"The Blanket Show" @ Cupcake Royale

Joey Veltkamp @ Cupcake Royale

Cupcake Royale is of Seattle's more delicious cupcake joints, and this week's
featured cupcake is an "Irish Cake Bomb" - chocolate No Doubt Stout cake
with Jameson Whiskey buttercream filling and Irish Cream whipped
frosting.

It's a sugar bomb of epic proportions (well,
actually it has the proportions of a standard cupcake, it just seems
more impressive somehow because of the whiskey... and the chocolate...
and the nom nom nom...) Luckily, I can afford to indulge since the
Capitol Hill Art Walk only happens once a month.

Headed home with the CakeSpy cookbook, a tiny felted rat pin, and licking the remnants of cupcake from my fingers, I feel that my sweet tooth is happily satisfied. My craving for innovative art and inspiration, on the other hand, is an ongoing odyssey. There are still at least 20 art spaces on Capitol Hill that I haven't had the chance to see yet, but that's what next month's art walk is for! And the one after that... and the one after that...

Friday, March 2, 2012

Perhaps I'm simply spoiled by Pioneer Square's long history of art walk spectacle, or Capitol Hill's typical late nights, but as a newcomer to the 1st Friday Fremont Art Walk, I'm a little confused that there aren't more open establishments.

Frame Up Studios is easy enough to find, and they're kind enough to provide a flyer with a map of the art walk circuit. They specialise in custom archival framing, and this evening they're featuring a selection of Seattle-centric works by non-local artists. A native of Paris, France, Ivan Mejac captures vibrant vingettes of iconic Seattle landmarks in his photographs. Painter and sign maker Sean Barton hails from the Bay Area, and his text-based pieces lend an interesting perspective to the Emerald City.

Sean Barton @ Frame Up Studios

Under the Needle @ High Dive

Next on my list is the High Dive, a venue that strives to support local artists, bands, musicians, and writers. Their showcase to-night includes 9 artists from Under the Needle Tattoo and 3 different bands. Entry is free until 9pm; the bands start up at 9.30, but I can't stick around for the musical portion of the show this eve. The art! It calls to me, and I'm certain there's more to see...

Just next door lives Hub and Bespoke, a shop that caters to Seattle's bicycle contingent with bicycle accessories, bicycle art, and pretty much all things bicycle related. The featured artist this eve is Soren O'Malley, an avid cyclist and bike mechanic, who incorporates his love of and familiarity with bicycles into his detailed print work. I'm not as avid a cyclist as I should be, but Hub and Bespoke has an atmosphere both inviting and inspiring, so I'll almost certainly be back. The free cheese doesn't hurt, and I find it impossible to leave without purchasing an incredibly comfortable pair of stripey green cashmere socks.

Soren O'Malley @ Hub & Bespoke

The bike shop is amazing, but the highlight of my evening is by far an adorable cafe called Pie. Their tiny pies, both savoury and sweet, are delicious. Try their key lime - it's rich, creamy, and totally hits the spot. I have no small experience in the arts of pie building (it's my favourite activity aside from art making), and I have to say these pie makers are pros. The featured artist is Deborah Faas, a Seattle based painter with a decidedly vintage flair. If you visit Pie on Wednesday, 14 March (Pi Day) you can take advantage of pies
priced at only $3.14 a piece! Also, they're open late - until 2am on
Fridays & Saturdays!

Deborah Faas @ Pie

The art spaces I've seen so far exhibit a fairly balanced cross-section of Seattle art culture, but I don't feel that I've fully experienced the Fremont community. The majority of local businesses close at 6pm on Friday nights, so a better way to explore the Fremont art scene might be to arrive earlier in the afternoon. Unfortunately, my day job keeps me busy until 6pm on Fridays, so I'll either have to re-visit Fremont another day or wait until the annual Solstice Festival.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

I decided to try something shiney and new for this 1st Thursday art walk. There's an exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum that I'm on a mission to see, but first I need to round up a few friends.

First stop: The Tashiro Kaplan Building. Jimmi Indigo's work is still on display in the downstairs gallery from last month, and I'm happy to hang out while he fields questions. I take a look around and notice that there are some sensual new charcoal drawings by artist Roger Wheeler. The textured grounds offer a dynamic base for the flowing lines and feminine forms, and I discover after a few minutes of conversation that the artist is also a mask maker. A founding member of the Fremont Arts Council, Roger has created pieces for numerous events around town including the Fremont Festival and the Solstice Parade. He's been a resident of the TK artist community since the building opened in 2004.

Roger Wheeler @ Tashiro Kaplan

Since Jimmi is still engaged in conversation, I wander upstairs for a tour of Roger's studio space. We both lament the fact that, aside from private invitations from residents, the TK Building only opens its upper floors to the public once a year. Due to its prime location in the heart of Pioneer Square and its size (more than 50 studios), the TK Artist Lofts have become covetted real estate by artists and craftsman alike (the waiting list is more than 2 years long). Unlike most Seattle art spaces, the TK Building offers both live *and* work spaces to not just individual artists, but entire families (well-behaved pets are welcome too). In some ways, the TK Building is little more than a highly creative apartment complex, but for artists such as Roger, his loft is a space where he can live, create, display his work, and share his process.

Upon entering Roger's studio, I find myself surrounded by a multitude of masks staring at me from the walls. Some are large and intricate, like the 5 foot tall interpretation of Capricorn with pointed curling horns. Some are a little creepy, like the clown face modelled after a friend's tattoo. References to mythology, the seven deadly sins and the works of Francis Bacon are interspersed with found art, shells, bones, and a few in-process pieces. As a primarily 2-dimensional artist, I am fascinated by Roger's sculptural style of paper mache. His method of layering reminds me of the way I layer paint, but the finished product is all together a different beast (sometimes literally).

Roger Wheeler @ Tashiro Kaplan

I am familiar with Jimmi Indigo and a few of the other artists in the TK Building, and after seeing Roger's work, I am more impatient than ever for the once-yearly opening.

The illustrious Rachel has arrived downstairs, so she and I gather Jimmi and head toward the SAM. The show this evening is 'Gauguin and Polynesia: An Elusive Paradise', and since it's 1st Thursday, museum tickets are half price. While I'm not the biggest Gauguin fan, I've never seen Polynesian art before, and I'm interested to view the authentic native art forms in juxtaposition with Gauguin's appropriated interpretations.

Rachel & Jimmi @ SAM

The show is packed, but we do our best to weave in and out of small
pockets of breathing room. I remember from art history that Gauguin
travelled a good deal in his youth and settled in Paris for a decade as a
stockbroker, but then became fascinated by art, and left his family to indulge his compulsive need for recognition. He left Western society and spent the remainder
of his life in French Polynesia attempting to experience and express the pure, the pristine,
and the primitive.

Gauguin experimented with Impressionism early in his artistic career, but soon left it behind in favour of an all together new technique. He understood the importance of light and shadow to create the illusions of depth and form, but instead of employing it as the central focus, he used blocks of colour and bold outlines to define his subjects. His simplistic style became known as Primitivism.

Paul Gauguin, "Reclining Tahitian Women," 1894

Gauguin journeyed to Tahiti in order to study local culture and customs, but upon arriving, he discovered that it wasn't exactly the tropical "promised land" he'd expected. European influence and restrictions imposed by the Catholic Church had severely limited Tahitian customs, and the natives were prohibited from practicing traditional ceremonies and dancing as well as the arts of carving and tattooing. Nevertheless determined to recapture the "Tahiti of former times", Gauguin created a huge body of work which received a less than enthusiastic reception back in Paris. Rejecting Western society entirely, a disheartened Gauguin returned to Polynesia to focus his artistic energies in a more mystical direction. Suffering from poor health and depression, Gauguin's final works explored themes of death, resignation, and "the Beyond".

Paul Gauguin, "Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?," 1897 (photo courtesy of Wikipedia)

The art of Polynesia from the early 1800's is indeed evocative of the
primal nature of humanity that fascinated Gauguin. The natives used
natural materials such as bone, wood, stone, shells, flesh, feathers,
and flowers as a celebration of life and to express ideas of divinity. The tribal aesthetic, especially tattoo design, has been appropriated and is in evidence in numerous aspects of contemporary Western culture.

Marquesas Islands, "Tiki," 19th century

Marquesas Islands, "Head Ornament," 19th century

The decline of the primal aspects of Tahitian culture parallels the gradual deterioration of Gauguin's belief in the exotic. But change is the nature of both art and culture, and all things must, in time, come to an end. Gauguin's end came in 1903, and despite his unfortunate personality, he is recognised as the first artist to adopt a simplistic art form in order to recapture the archetypal essence of humanity.

The "Gauguin and Polynesia" exhibit will be on display until 29 April, so if you're interested in Post Impressionism and Primitive art, it's a show worth seeing. I'd recommend going on a non art walk evening if you'd rather not elbow your way through the throng.

Next 1st Thursday I look forward to returning to Delicatus for my favourite sandwich and some swingin' tunes, and revisiting the labyrinth of studios surrounding the TK Building. Hope to see you there!